Automobile drivers using mobile terminals while driving often causes safety issues. According to an analysis report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the United States, more than 5,000 people nationwide die every year in traffic accidents resulting from lack of concentration caused by, e.g., texting or making phone calls while driving.
Currently, about 50 countries and areas across the world have explicitly banned the use of mobile terminals while driving. Some countries impose very severe punishments on this. For example, in Singapore, a first-time offender will receive a fine of up to S$1,000 and imprisonment of six months, and a repeater will receive a fine of up to S$2,000 and imprisonment of one year. In the UK, a driver who uses a mobile terminal while driving may face a charge of “reckless driving” and may be imprisoned for up to two years. Many cities in China have also started to impose heavy punishments on drivers who use mobile terminals while driving.
Conventionally, restricting drivers from using mobile terminals while driving is enforced by traffic police officers who monitor the drivers on the road. Drivers who use mobile terminals while driving are then punished.
Another approach is to use traffic cameras to take photos and obtain information. Drivers who are caught using mobile terminals by the traffic cameras are then punished.
However, neither of the above-discussed approaches can catch all drivers who violate the rule, and thus using mobile terminals while driving cannot be completed eliminated.